Welcome to my blog all about the things I love to grow and cook. You'll find a collection of seasonal gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan-friendly recipe posts, as well as a round up of my gardening throughout the year. I wish you good reading, happy cooking and perfect planting!

Sesame shortbreads (gluten-free; dairy-free; vegan)

I’ve had a busy few days with my work, and subsequently only had time for one quick baking session this week. I turned to an old favourite of mine, shortbread. Easy to make and lovely to eat, and open to so many variations. This time, I had a break with tradition and made a super rich seeded version and replaced some of the fat with tahini.

I often replace a portion of the flour in cakes and bakes with ground almonds, and, if I don’t have enough ready-ground, I blitz up my own in a coffee grinder. If you use the non-blanched almonds, you’ll find the ground meal gives a more earthy to your bakes.

These tasty shortbreads have a soft, crumbly texture, and a rich, nutty flavour; they are delicious with a cup of coffee and keep well for a few days in an airtight tin. I find them impossible to resist. I’m away to eat the last one after I finish typing this!

Makes: 18

Ingredients

150g gluten-free plain flour (such as Dove’s Farm)

65g icing sugar

75g ground almonds

25g toasted sesame seeds

85g tahini (sesame seed paste)

50g very soft dairy-free margarine (or butter if you eat it)

1 tbsp. each of chia seeds, toasted sesame seeds and Demerara sugar, mixed, for the topping

Sieve the flour and icing sugar into a bowl and stir in the ground almonds and toasted sesame seeds.

Mix the tahini and margarine together until well blended, then stir into the dry ingredients until well mixed.

Bring the ingredients together using your hands, then turn out on to a lightly floured work surface and knead gently to form a smooth dough. Divide into 18 portions and form each into a ball.

Arrange on the baking tray, press down lightly to make chunky rounds and sprinkle lightly with the sugary seed mix. Chill for 30 minutes.

Preparing sesame shortbreads. Image: Kathryn Hawkins

Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan oven), gas 4. Line a large baking tray with baking parchment. Bake the shortbreads for about 25 minutes until lightly brown and crisp. Leave to cool on the tray.